Allan BirchfieldAn attempted coup is under way at the West Coast Regional Council in a bid to roll chairman Allan Birchfield. Deputy chairman Stuart Challenger confirmed yesterday morning he had called an extraordinary meeting of the council to remove Cr Birchfield as chairman. Cr Challenger said the changes were significant and the council had an obligation to go back to the communities and consult with them again. "I called the meeting [to replace the chairman] because I am concerned at the way things have been operating," he said yesterday. If all four vote to unseat Cr Birchfield, he will lose his position as chairman of the seven-member council.

Source: Otago Daily Times May 13, 2021 16:30 UTC